YouTube research

Online Domestic Extremism in Canada Data Briefing (Dec 2025-Feb 2026)

Recurring data briefing tracking violent-extremist activity across major platforms in Canada; consistently finds Telegram the leading platform for such activity.

War profiteers: online ads and the machinery of propaganda for war

Examines how governments deploy war propaganda through online advertising and argues platforms bear responsibility under international human rights law to prevent monetizing it.

Truth be Dammed: Climate Disinformation on YouTube and TikTok

With Maldita.es: dis/misinformation videos about Spain's Valencia (DANA) floods were amplified on both platforms and remained online a year later; YouTube lacks a dedicated policy and TikTok fails to enforce its own.

YouTube's Safety Features Lost in Translation

Across all 83 supported languages, safety panels were unevenly distributed: English had full coverage while many languages, including European ones, lacked basic safety features.

Banned But Not Gone: YouTube profits from Andrew Tate's misogyny

YouTube still hosts and monetizes Andrew Tate's misogynistic content despite banning his account.

The 2025 RDR Index: Big Tech Edition

Seventh edition (first full evaluation since 2022): no company scored over 50%; TikTok debuted strongly while X showed RDR's largest-ever single-company decline after cutting its human rights team and transparency reporting.

YouTube's Anorexia Algorithm

YouTube recommends eating-disorder and self-harm videos to accounts modelled on young girls (UK and EU editions followed Feb 2025).

Rainbow-burning: how social media companies increase risks for LGBTQ+ people in Africa

Documented 214 threatening anti-LGBTQ+ posts across the platforms in five African countries; only 51 were removed when reported, blaming under-resourced moderation for African languages and engagement-driven algorithms.

TikTok and Facebook fail to detect harmful disinformation ads (US election)

Weeks before the US presidential election, TikTok approved 50% of disinformation ads and Facebook accepted one; YouTube approved 50% initially but blocked publication pending ID verification.

On a second attempt, TikTok and YouTube pass test to detect US election disinformation ads

In a follow-up test both platforms caught and rejected the resubmitted disinformation ads, showing improvement over the earlier failure.

US Election Platform Preparedness: Comparative Analysis

Assessed platforms across six areas ahead of the 2024 US election; the most alarming common finding was a pervasive lack of transparency about policies, safety efforts and resourcing.

Public Data Access Programs: A First Look

First systematic evaluation of 19 platforms' researcher data-access programs; access varies widely and data quality is poor.

TikTok and YouTube pass new test to detect foreign election disinformation ads in UK

Ahead of the UK general election, both platforms rejected a set of prohibited foreign-interference/disinformation ads, a rare pass that contrasts with failures elsewhere.

Ticked off: TikTok approves EU elections disinformation ads in Ireland

TikTok approved all 16 election-disinformation ads ahead of the EU parliamentary elections; X rejected all of them and YouTube rejected all but two.

Full Disclosure: Stress Testing Tech Platforms' Ad Repositories

With CheckFirst: tested ad-transparency tools of 11 companies; none rated 'ready,' with major data gaps and inaccuracies.

'Votes will not be counted': Indian election disinformation ads and YouTube

In a joint test with Access Now, YouTube approved 100% (48/48) of ads containing blatant election disinformation in English, Hindi and Telugu, all violating YouTube's own policies.

CheckFirst & Faktabaari: Finnish far-right videos highly recommended by YouTube

First CrossOver Finland report showing significant over-representation of right-wing/far-right voices in YouTube's recommendations during the 2024 Finnish presidential election.

How Automated Content Moderation Works (Even When It Doesn't)

Explainer documenting the automated techniques (hash-matching, classifiers) platforms use to moderate billions of posts, and where these systems routinely fail.

Safe by Default (People vs Big Tech briefing)

Argues engagement-based recommender systems amplifying borderline content is a feature not a bug; calls on regulators to require non-profiling feeds as the default.

Platforms, Promises and Politics: a reality check on election pledges

Finds platforms' election interventions in the Global Majority are template-copied and far weaker than those offered in the US/EU.

Disinformation on YouTube: research and content moderation policies

Factsheet documenting how disinformation on YouTube is researched and how the platform's content-moderation policies operate.

The New Climate Denial

'New' denial narratives attacking climate science/solutions made up 70% of climate-denial content on YouTube in 2023.

Violent and sexualised hate speech targeting women journalists (South Africa)

Nearly all 40 misogynistic test ads (in 4 languages) were approved; Meta and TikTok approved all 40 within 24 hours. Concludes automated moderation is 'not fit for purpose.'

Platforms' policies on climate change misinformation (V1)

Maps how the five platforms address climate misinformation, revealing uneven and weak climate-specific rules.

A world of online hate and lies: Mapping our investigations

A synthesis of 10+ country investigations concluding platforms systematically fail to enforce their own hate-speech/disinformation ad policies, with weaker moderation outside the US.

Platforms' policies on elections misinformation

Maps and compares how five major platforms address election misinformation in their policies.

Platforms' policies on health misinformation

Maps and compares how five major platforms address health misinformation in their policies.

'We need to kill them': Xenophobic hate speech approved by Facebook, TikTok and YouTube (South Africa)

Violent xenophobic test ads were approved by all three platforms; nearly every ad passed, with only one Facebook rejection.

YouTube's Climate Denial Dollars

200 climate-disinformation videos (half breaching Google policy) drew 73.8M views with ads placed against them.

Extreme and violent anti-LGBTQ+ hate approved for publication by leading social media platforms

Test ads with extreme anti-LGBTQ+ hate were almost all approved: YouTube and TikTok approved all 10 ads, Facebook rejected only two, and all three approved the 'burn all gays' ad.